I would like to ask you all to assist us in
Tennessee with our struggle
to preserve a burial site. As you have read, the Texas Oiler's are
planning a move to Nashville and the site picked is a known native
burial site. Tennessee and the NFL have shown little interest in the
concern for our ancestors and we would ask your help.

What we would
like to see is a boycott of the NFL and its sponsors. If you think it
would be effective we would ask also a boycott of all of Tennessee's
products and tourism. This could even include a boycott of the country
music industry arriving from Tennessee. Also, there is Opryland and
Gaylord Enterprises that we could target for this boycott. I welcome
your input and hope you will join us in this struggle. The bottom line
is that the Oiler's could locate to a less sensitive location and better
serve
the needs of Tennesseans without destroying a First Nations grave site.
Look for an
update soon on this issue.

In The Struggle,
Michael Sims - 2.16.97

Historical
Information

Prior to the 1600's and the arrival of Columbus the Shawnee people were in
this area. Later the Cherokee moved here,
however burials are from many
different nations. The state of Tennessee, however tends to label these
burials as "non-culturally affiliated".

Background
Synopsis

In 1990 a bridge project was undertaken where Jefferson Street meets
the
Cumberland River near downtown Nashville. Several Native American
burial sites
were found during this project. An 1844 archaeological report revealed
that
this was part of a burial site that extends for a mile along the
Cumberland
River. The site for the Oiler's new stadium is a
105 acre tract that
extends along the east bank of the Cumberland River between Woodland
Street
and Shelby Street, which is the continuation of the site mentioned in
this
1844 report. Although it is rumored that the plans for the
stadium have
been altered to move it further back from the river, the probability is
very
high that [more] Native burials will be encountered. Further compounding
this is
the fact that the displaced businesses might be relocated to Cockrill
Bend and Bell's
Bend, both sites of numerous Native burials.

At best, the response of local officials has
been apathetic. Nashville
Mayor Phil Bredesen said in one radio
interview that "he does not consider
the matter of Indian burials on the East Bank an issue, because they
have
already been disturbed by construction in the past". While
there may have
been some disturbance in the past, for about a hundred years Nashville
used
this site as a landfill and it is estimated there is about 16 feet of
cultural fill over the natural land surface covering these Native
burials.
It is significant to note that all soil and fill (and burials) will be
removed during this project with the stadiums' foundation lying on
exposed
bedrock. At Traveller's
Rest there was a garage built over some of the
Native burials. The floor was concrete and preserved the burials from
disturbance, much like one could expect the cultural fill to protect the
East Bank burials from disturbance but not when the entire soil horizon
is
stripped bare.

As usual, Tennessee maintains that only state
laws are applicable to this
project. However, the Native American Graves Protection and
Repatriation
Act (NAGPRA), [Introduction 10.1 Purpose and Applicability]: (part
(b) Applicability. These regulations pertain to identification and
appropriate disposition of human remains, funerary objects, sacred
objects,
or objects of cultural patrimony that are {1}in In the possession or
control
of any institution or State or local Government receiving Federal Funds.
On February 29, 1996 the Tennessee Legislature approved a 55 million
dollar
bond package for this project. Since Tennessee receives Federal
funding,
this then becomes a Federally funded project. Further, the Tennessee
Division of Archaeology would receive or "have control" of any
remains and
artifacts unearthed and they are, by their own admission, responsible
for
compliance with NAGPRA. So why is NAGPRA not
being followed here?

Under Tennessee law the only time Native
Americans may monitor a
construction site is during the actual removal of human remains. Core
drilling was done on this site without any Native Americans present and,
as
I understand it, they were not allowed on-site. The official
statement of
the Tennessee Commission of Indians Affairs was "they received no
phone
calls or correspondence about the core drilling and were never invited
to
monitor this part of the project". If NAGPRA procedures had been
followed,
then not only would a Native American monitor have been present, a
council
would have been formed to study this project with Native input before
any
work commenced (see the
Section 106 process under the Cultural Resources
Act
for further details).

Again we are seeing another Native burial site
threatened by cultural
development. Without NAGPRA, States throughout Turtle Island are
free to
dispose of Native burial sites as they see fit for the
"betterment" of
community. We have attempted to bring this issue to a Federal Court,
but
our resources are limited. At the very least we need to be able to have
a
monitor present during construction. We ask for
your support by letting our
officials know that we are not happy with this latest attempt to strip
us of
our dignity by unearthing our ancestors. This project to move
the Oiler's
to Nashville demonstrates the need to strengthen State laws everywhere
and
demand that NAGPRA laws be stringently followed.

Update - February 25, 1997

As time passes the excavation and demolition continues on the site that
will be the new home of the National Football Leagues' Houston Oilers.
Actual construction on the stadium is scheduled to start in May, 1997
with the completion expected to be one year sooner than previously
thought. Rapidly, time is running out for our ancestors which are buried
there. Recently, I received the much awaited report of the
archaeological monitoring of the geotechnical test bore locations. This
article will brief you on the contents of this report and other
developments in this dynamic situation.

First we will consider some legal questions that have arisen.
Experts have assured me that NAGPRA laws only applies to museums,
universities, institutions, etc. that have holdings of Native American
remains and artifacts. This would also apply to state institutions that
hold such items for tribal response. In this case that would be the
Tennessee Department of Archaeology. Assuming this is true, the
question of whether the Section 106 process applies still remains. What
has been determined, is that the stream of funds for the Oilers deal
derived from a state General Obligations Fund and is construed by
Tennessee government officials as not to be a direct federal stream.
However, the stream of funds for the road improvements to support the
stadium is a direct federal stream from the Tennessee Department of
Transportation. Therefore, the process known as Section 106 of the
National Historic Preservation Act is pertinent and we ask why it is not
being followed?

The archaeological background of the report surmises that Native
occupation of this area started about 13000 BP (before present). The
Nashville basin was thought to be a hunting area for the Shawnee,
Chickasaw, and Cherokee with the Shawnee last expelled from there around
1745. The Nashville area has often been referred to as the "Land or City
of the Dead" as so many different nations buried their ancestors here.
Being on the Cumberland River, it was also a major trade center and
migration route for many nations. The report indicates that there are no
known prehistoric sites in the subject area. However, it does state that
because of the large number of such sites on the Cumberland river it is highly
probable that such a site would be encountered during the construction
of the stadium. It was stated in the report that "limited background
research (archaeological) was conducted to facilitate interpretations of
the geotechnical survey monitoring." Questions were even raised in the
report about the quality and techniques used in the core testing. In the
conclusion of the report, they stated there was such a high probability
of encountering prehistoric remains that an archaeologist should be
required to monitor the project at all times. Reports often reach us of
burials encountered during construction and then discreetly removed.
Considering the rampant nature of these reports it would seem that the
contractor would welcome such a monitor. Still, as in the case of
following Section 106, our pleas fall on deaf ears and our ancestors
continue to be denied the respect they deserve.

We ask you to continue to support the boycott and demand that the
federal laws be followed. Also, we are seeking legal assistance in this
difficult struggle. Perhaps one of you might have the legal expertise
that we need and be willing to join with us. Time is running out and the
ancestors need your help in the struggle.

AND TO THE FOUR DIRECTIONS, PEACE

Michael Sims, 02.25.97

Oilers Move Fact Sheet - 4.7.97

The proposed stadium site on the East Bank of the Cumberland river will disturb a Native
American Burial Site.a)[according to the] 1876 Antiquities in Tennessee Report to the Smithsonian, by Joseph Jones, "in a small mound...on the eastern bank of the Cumberland river...at the foot of a large mound," this is proximate if not actually contained in the proposed site. Further, "Graves also extend to the river's edge..." and "the fields around also abound with fragments of pottery, shells, stone implements, and splinters of flint. These remains indicated the occupancy of this of this area for a considerable time by the aborigines."
b) REPORT: Archaeological Monitoring of Geotechnical Test Bore Locations For The Proposed Nashville TN-NFL Stadium Site, Davidson County Tennessee, prepared by Merrill Dicks, State Archaeologist
CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS: "Monitoring was limited by the low resolution offered by the drilling process and by the small number and distribution of test bores. ...no direct evidence for the presence of archaeological remains was encountered during monitoring of geotechnical drilling. Indirect evidence for the presence of buried landscapes was encountered. Associated deposits appear to be of sufficient age to contain prehistoric deposits... It is recommended that future construction activities...be monitored by qualified archaeologists to determine if potentially significant archaeological remains are located...".
THE STATE ARCHAEOLOGICAL REPORTS AND THE HISTORIC REPORTS BOTH AGREE THAT THE PROBABILITY IS VERY HIGH THAT A SIGNIFICANT NATIVE SITE WILL BE ENCOUNTERED.

Residents in the area do not want a stadium in their neighborhood. A voter referendum was held because of this objection. One can reasonably expect significant traffic congestion in a residential neighborhood with a 50,000 seat stadium nearby.

Significant local area road improvements must be done to accommodate this project. Your tax dollars will pay for this.

The access to this site will be at best poor, with major congestion predicted on the arteries supplying access to the proposed stadium.

Parking is expected to be a significant problem. Already plans are underway to condemn the Gerst Haust Restaurant because the project planners know that they have insufficient parking space with the current plans.
Let It Be Known We Do Not Object to The Scope of This Project, Just That We Simply Ask For The Respect Due Any Human Beings and That You Move Your Stadium To Another Location That Will Not Desecrate Native American Burials.